A new hypothesis on the origins of the “Penyagolosa” toponym.
The social and cultural importance of the Penyagolosa massif and peak cannot be underestimated. The highest mountain in the Catalan-speaking area of the Valencian Land, its symbolic signification for Valencians is not quite dissimilar to that of Montserrat for Catalans. But in spite of its popularity and importance, the origin of the name “Penyagolosa” has not been yet elucidated.

In this paper the serious but not conclusive hypotheses formulated by precedent researchers are recapitulated, and a new one, straightforward and simpler, is offered (pinna angulosa > penya angolosa > Penyagolosa), based on linguistic as well as on orographic factors, and on dialectological and documental witnesses.